(vol. 1) August / September 1950 - November 1973 (vol. 2) November 1999 - February 2000 (JSA...) October 2004 - March 2005 (vol. 3) May 2009 - December 2009 (vol. 4) July 2011 (vol. 5) March 2020 - October 2021
Strange Adventures is a series of American comic books published by DC Comics, the first of which was August–September 1950, according to the cover date, and published continuously until November 1973.
Original series
Strange Adventures ran for 244 issues and was DC Comics' first science fiction title. It began with an adaptation of the film Destination Moon.[1] The sales success of the gorilla cover-featured story in Strange Adventures #8 (May 1951) led DC to produce numerous comic book covers with depictions of gorillas.[2][3] The series was home to one of the last superheroes of the pre-Silver Age of Comic Books era, Captain Comet, created by writer John Broome and artist Carmine Infantino in issue #9.[4] A combination of the "Captain Comet" feature with the "gorilla craze" was presented in issue #39 (December 1953).[5] Other notable series included Star Hawkins which began in issue #114 (March 1960)[6] and the Atomic Knights which debuted in issue #117 (June 1960).[7]
In "The Strange Adventure That Really Happened" in issue #140 (May 1962), real life comics creators editor Julius Schwartz and artist Sid Greene struggle to make writer Gardner Fox recall a story he has written that holds the key to saving the Earth from alien invasion. In a rare acknowledgement of the rest of the DC universe in Strange Adventures, one panel mentions Gardner Fox having previously met the Flash in the iconic Silver Age story "Flash of Two Worlds".
Strange Adventures #180 (September 1965) introduced Animal Man in a story by Dave Wood and Carmine Infantino.[8] The character was revived by writer Grant Morrison in 1988. Writer Bob Haney and artist Howard Purcell created the supernatural character the Enchantress in Strange Adventures #187 (April 1966).[9] The Enchantress appears in the 2016 live-action movie Suicide Squad, portrayed by Cara Delevingne.[10]
Initially a science fiction anthology title with some continuing features starring SF protagonists, the series became a supernatural-fantasy title beginning with issue #202, for which it received a new logo. Deadman's first appearance in Strange Adventures #205, written by Arnold Drake and drawn by Carmine Infantino,[11] included the first known depiction of narcotics in a story approved by the Comics Code Authority.[12] The "Deadman" feature served as an early showcase for the artwork of Neal Adams.[11]
With issue #217, the title gained another new logo and began reprinting stories of Adam Strange and the Atomic Knights, among other stories. Several Strange Adventure stories were also reprinted in some of DC Comics' later anthologies such as From Beyond the Unknown.
In 1978, DC Comics intended to revive Strange Adventures. These plans were put on hold that year due to the DC Implosion, a line-wide scaling back of the company's publishing output. When the project was revived a year later, the title was changed to Time Warp and the series was in the Dollar Comics format.[13][14]
Publication history
Continuing features in Strange Adventures included:
Adam Strange (reprints in #217 to 244; new stories in #222, 226 and 227 text stories with illustrations)
Awards
The series was nominated and awarded several awards over the years, including Alley Awards in 1963 for "General Fantasy", in 1965 for "Best Regularly Published Fantasy Comic", in 1966 for "Best Fantasy/SF/Supernatural Title", in 1967 for "Best Cover" (for issue #207 by Neal Adams), in 1967 for "Best Full-Length Story" ("Who's Been Lying in My Grave?" in issue #205 by Arnold Drake and Carmine Infantino), and the 1967 for "Best New Strip" ("Deadman" by Drake and Infantino).
Revivals
Strange Adventures vol. 2 #1 (November 1999).
Vertigo miniseries
In 1999, DC Comics' Vertigo imprint released a four-issue mini-series reviving the Strange Adventures title and concept.
JSA Strange Adventures #1 (October 2004), art by John Watson.
In 2004, Strange Adventures was again revived, in modified format, as the six-issue limited seriesJSA Strange Adventures, which presented a new Golden AgeJustice Society of America story incorporating fantasy-fiction themes. It was written by Kevin J. Anderson, with art by Barry Kitson and Gary Erskine. The miniseries is cover-dated October 2004 to March 2005, and was collected in trade paperback in 2010.[15]
A new Strange Adventures series was written by Tom King with Mitch Gerads and Doc Shaner. The series was released in March 2020,[19] under the DC Black Label imprint. The limited series ran for 12 issues, ending in October 2021.[20] For the 2022 Hugo Awards, the series received award in Best Graphic Story category.[21]
The Steve Ditko Omnibus Volume 1 includes Strange Adventures #188: "Don't Bring That Monster to Life" by Otto Binder and Steve Ditko and Strange Adventures #189: "The Way-Out Worlds of Bertram Tilley" by Dave Wood and Ditko, 480 pages, September 2011, ISBN1-4012-3111-X
DC Goes Ape collects Strange Adventures #201, 168 pages, October 2008, ISBN978-1401219352
Deadman
The Deadman Collection hardcover collects Strange Adventures #205–216, 356 pages, December 2001, ISBN1563898497
Adam Strange: The Silver Age Omnibus collects (in addition to Showcase #17–19 and Mystery in Space #53–100, 102) Strange Adventures #157, 217, 218, 220, 221, 222, 224, 226, 235, and 241–243, 848 pages, July 2017, ISBN9781401272951
In other media
In 2019, WarnerMedia and Greg Berlanti, the producer of The CW's Arrowverse, wanted to produce a "super hero anthology" series under the title Strange Adventures for the streaming service HBO Max. The series had reportedly been in development previously for the DC Universe streaming service.[22] In August 2022, Kevin Smith, who was writing the script with Eric Carrasco, said that the series was cancelled.[23]
References
^Irvine, Alex; Dolan, Hannah, ed. (2010). "1950s". DC Comics Year By Year A Visual Chronicle. London, United Kingdom: Dorling Kindersley. p. 64. ISBN978-0-7566-6742-9. DC picked up on renewed public interest in science fiction by launching its first comic in the genre, the anthology series, Strange Adventures. The series kicked off its 244-issue run with an adaptation of the first color science fiction movie, Destination Moon (released that same month), written by Gardner Fox and drawn by Curt Swan.((cite book)): |first2= has generic name (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
^Daniels, Les (1995). "A Tour of Tomorrow Science Fiction's Fabulous Future". DC Comics : Sixty Years of the World's Favorite Comic Book Heroes. New York, New York: Bulfinch Press. p. 103. ISBN0821220764. The eighth issue of Strange Adventures achieved some sort of classic status. The cover showed a gorilla in a zoo holding up a slate that read 'Please believe me! I am the victim of a terrible scientific experiment!' This 'Incredible Story of an Ape with a Human Brain' had strong sales, and [editor Julius] Schwartz recalls that 'Irwin Donenfeld called me in and said we should try it again. Finally all the editors wanted to use gorilla covers'.
^Irvine "1950s" in Dolan, p. 67: "In an attempt to revive readers' interest in super heroes, writer John Broome and artist Carmine Infantino introduced 'Tomorrow's Man of Destiny', Captain Comet, in Strange Adventures #9".
^Irvine "1950s" in Dolan, p. 71: "'The Guilty Gorilla', by writer John Broome and artist Murphy Anderson in Strange Adventures #39, was a foray into the intelligent-gorilla craze that flourished in DC comics in the 1950s".
^Broome, John (w), Sekowsky, Mike (p), Sachs, Bernard (i). "The Case of the Martian Witness" Strange Adventures, no. 114 (March 1960).
^McAvennie, Michael "1960s" in Dolan, p. 100: "'The Rise of the Atomic Knights', ushered in by scribe John Broome and illustrator Murphy Anderson, transported fans to a post-World War III Earth ravaged by atomic radiation".
^McAvennie "1960s" in Dolan, p. 115: "Although it would be several months before Buddy Baker would take on the moniker of Animal Man, it was in this issue that he developed animal powers...[in a story by] writer Dave Wood and artist Carmine Infantino".
^ abMcAvennie "1960s" in Dolan, p. 125: "In a story by scribe Arnold Drake and artist Carmine Infantino, circus aerialist Boston Brand learned there was much more to life after his death...Deadman's origin tale was the first narcotics-related story to require prior approval from the Comics Code Authority. In addition, Neal Adams, the artist who succeeded Infantino with the second issue, would soon become an industry legend".
^Cronin, Brian (September 24, 2009). "Comic Book Legends Revealed #226". Comic Book Resources. Archived from the original on January 26, 2012. Retrieved December 22, 2011. One comic that I know preceded the 1971 amendment [to the Comics Code] was Strange Adventures #205, the first appearance of Deadman!...a clear reference to narcotics, over THREE YEARS before Marvel Comics would have to go without the Comics Code to do an issue about drugs.
^Wells, John (October 24, 1997), "'Lost' DC: The DC Implosion", Comics Buyer's Guide, Iola, Wisconsin, no. 1249, p. 134
^McAvennie "1970s" in Dolan, p. 183: "DC wanted to bring back Strange Adventures (last published in November 1973) as a Dollar Comic-sized anthology...the series was eventually green-lit, though under a new name - Time Warp - that evoked more of a sci-fi feel".
